Faze Clan win the Grand Slam after clinching ESL Pro League Title
FAZE UP!!
Faze Clan have outgunned and outperformed Cloud9 to take home the ESL Pro League Season 17 title in a spectacular 3-1 sweep in the Best of 5 Finals. And along with this accolade, they also managed to take home the Intel Grand Slam Season 4. Along with it’s $1 million prize pool. The international team are the 4th team ever to win the Grand Slam.
The Journey:
Karrigan's international CS:GO team has secured their first trophy since the player break, with outstanding individual performances from the young trio of ropz, broky and Twistzz. This recent victory, coupled with their successes at Katowice, Pro League season 15 and Cologne last year, makes them the fourth team to claim the Intel Grand Slam's $1 million bonus prize in the competition's history.
While G2 and Heroic emerged as title contenders in recent months, FaZe's level of talent could not be ignored. Questions arose about karrigan's recurring "honeymoon periods" with his teams and the future prospects of an unchanged lineup that went nine months without a trophy. But they silenced the doubters by becoming deserved winners of the seventeenth season of the ESL Pro League.
Apart from a seed decider match against Vitality in the groups, FaZe put up progressively more impressive performances along the way to the grand final. Where they faced off against their nemesis, Cloud9.
Cloud9 had gotten the better of the new-look roster on multiple occasions in the past year. Denying them the Grand Slam back in Dallas and playing a key role in their downfall at the IEM Rio Major, where they were eliminated in the group stage, shocking the world. Cloud9 also defeated FaZe in the quarterfinals of the previous Pro League season, cementing themselves as a key rival.
The Match:
FaZe exorcised their demons on Overpass. The venue of their defeat to Cloud9 back in Rio. Combining eight T and CT rounds to secure a 16-13 victory on their opponents' first map pick. With Inferno up next, the map where FaZe had an unblemished record in recent months, the CIS squad was up against it. However, broky led the charge, not recording a single death for the first quarter of the map, soon showing why FaZe was a force to be reckoned with.
Experience and stamina proved to be the key as FaZe and Cloud9 battled through a five-map marathon to determine the winner. In the end, FaZe emerged victorious, securing their first trophy in months and cementing their status as one of the top CS:GO teams in the world.
Twistzz secured his place at the top as one of the best the game has ever seen. As he becomes the first player in the history of Counter Strike to have two Intel Grand Slams.
Ropz was awarded the Tournament MVP for his outstanding plays and overall impact on the team.
In Conclusion:
Teams like G2 and Heroic may have emerged as title contenders in recent months. But FaZe's level of talent and experience proved too much for their rivals. With karrigan at the helm, the team showed their ability to bounce back from adversity and emerge victorious. Thus cementing their status as one of the top teams in the world. The future looks bright for FaZe, and fans can't wait to see what they'll achieve next.
Watch the full game here.
Image Source: ESL